New programme will teach locals about regenerative, organic growing

A new programme at the Sustainable Living Centre will teach participants organic growing and introduce them to regenerative horticulture.

Sustainable Living Centre manager Elliot Cleland says the Beyond Organics Programme (BOP) is a volunteering and training programme at Golden Bay Sustainable Living Centre (SLC), taking place every Monday from 9am to 3pm for 16 weeks.

Sustainable Living Centre gardens manager Elliot Cleland.

“Through a combination of training sessions and hands-on working, participants will learn regenerative organic food growing skills, and gain experience they can apply to anything from productive home growing to small-scale market gardening or farming,” he says.

SLC currently hosts volunteers in the garden on a casual basis. Volunteers can attend whenever suits them.

However Elliot says the structure of the BOP will enable them to confidently invest more time and effort into upfront training for the volunteers enrolled, knowing they are committed to participating for the duration of the programme.

Having a fixed group of committed volunteers each week will also help them to ensure the productivity of the gardens and continued supply of produce throughout the year.

“There’s also the benefit of building lasting relationships with other people on the programme, and learning from each other,” says Elliot.

The first BOP will begin on Monday 27 September 2021 with 10 participants.

To find out more and apply click here.